--- title: "What is load balancing and when does your project need it | StreetHosting" description: "Learn how load balancing spreads requests across several servers to scale and avoid single points of failure, and when it helps versus when it is too early." url: "https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing" type: "page" language: "en-US" --- Infrastructure · 3 min · Advanced Published on Jun 17, 2026 · Updated on Jun 17, 2026 # Load balancing: what it is and when to use it A single server becomes a bottleneck and a single point of failure. Load balancing spreads requests across several, adding capacity and resilience. See when it makes sense. By [Equipe StreetHosting](https://streethosting.com.br/en/autores#equipe-streethosting) · StreetHosting infrastructure and support team [Network, DNS and domains](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/topics/networking) Summarize with: [](https://chat.openai.com/?q=Summarize%20the%20key%20points%20of%20this%20StreetHosting%20guide%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Finfrastructure%2Fwhat-is-load-balancing.%20Highlight%20the%20step-by-step%20instructions%2C%20the%20prerequisites%20and%20the%20most%20common%20mistakes. "ChatGPT") [](https://claude.ai/new?q=Summarize%20the%20key%20points%20of%20this%20StreetHosting%20guide%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Finfrastructure%2Fwhat-is-load-balancing.%20Highlight%20the%20step-by-step%20instructions%2C%20the%20prerequisites%20and%20the%20most%20common%20mistakes. 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"Perplexity") Share: [](https://x.com/intent/tweet?text=What%20is%20load%20balancing%20and%20when%20does%20your%20project%20need%20it&url=https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Finfrastructure%2Fwhat-is-load-balancing "Share on X") [](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Finfrastructure%2Fwhat-is-load-balancing "Share on Facebook") [](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Finfrastructure%2Fwhat-is-load-balancing "Share on LinkedIn") [](https://wa.me/?text=What%20is%20load%20balancing%20and%20when%20does%20your%20project%20need%20it%20https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Finfrastructure%2Fwhat-is-load-balancing "Share on WhatsApp") For agents: Copy as Markdown [.md](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing.md) In this guide 5 sections * [The single server problem](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#o-problema) * [How it works](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#como-funciona) * [The two gains](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#ganhos) * [When you need it](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#quando-precisa) * [Where to start](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#comecar) Quick answer **Load balancing** distributes requests across several servers, adding capacity and keeping a single machine from becoming a bottleneck or a single point of failure. If one server goes down, traffic goes to the others. It pays off when the load exceeds what one server can handle or when high availability becomes a requirement. Before that, it is usually too early. ## The single server problem[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#o-problema) A single server has two limits: its own capacity, and the fact that if it goes down, everything goes down with it. As the project grows, both become painful. Load balancing attacks both at once by spreading the work. It is one step in a journey that starts with [choosing between VPS, bare metal and cloud](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/bare-metal-vs-cloud-vs-vps). ## How it works[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#como-funciona) A load balancer sits in front of a group of identical servers. When a request arrives, it picks which server to send it to, spreading the load. For the people accessing it, everything is transparent: there is a single address, but several machines answering behind it. ## The two gains[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#ganhos) * More capacity, by adding up the power of several servers. * More resilience, because losing one does not take the service down. * Maintenance without downtime, by taking one server at a time out of the group. ## When you need it[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#quando-precisa) Do not set up load balancing too early. For most projects, a well-sized single server does the job for a long time. Premature complexity only adds new points of failure. The sign that the time has come is the load exceeding what one machine can handle, even after optimizing, or high availability becoming a requirement. That is when load balancing stops being a luxury and becomes a necessity. ## Where to start[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#comecar) * Single server optimized before scaling * Reverse proxy distributing across instances * Identical servers behind the balancer * Zero-downtime migration plan so you can evolve Start simple with an [Nginx reverse proxy](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/nginx-reverse-proxy-vps) and grow without downtime by following [how to migrate without downtime](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/migrate-server-without-downtime). For hardware that supports scale, check out [dedicated servers](https://streethosting.com.br/en/dedicated) and the [StreetHosting infrastructure](https://streethosting.com.br/en/infraestructure). In this guide * [The single server problem](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#o-problema) * [How it works](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#como-funciona) * [The two gains](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#ganhos) * [When you need it](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#quando-precisa) * [Where to start](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/what-is-load-balancing#comecar) ## Frequently asked questions What does a load balancer do? It sits in front of several servers and distributes requests among them. Instead of a single machine receiving everything, the load is spread out. That increases total capacity and keeps any one server from becoming the bottleneck. Does load balancing improve availability? Yes. If one server goes down, the balancer sends traffic to the ones still up. That way, the failure of one machine does not take down the whole service, which removes a single point of failure. Does every project need load balancing? No. For most projects, a well-sized single server is enough for a long time. Load balancing comes in when the load exceeds what one machine can handle or when high availability becomes a business requirement. Can I start simple? Yes. A reverse proxy can already distribute traffic across instances on the same network. As you grow, you move to dedicated solutions. There is no need to build the most complex architecture right away. Next step See dedicated servers Exclusive hardware in São Paulo with NVMe and Anti-DDoS. [See dedicated servers](https://streethosting.com.br/en/dedicated) [See Ryzen VPS Ryzen 9 9950X VPS in São Paulo with root access, NVMe and gamer Anti-DDoS.](https://streethosting.com.br/en/vps/ryzen) [Explore the infrastructure Datacenter in São Paulo, gamer network and options for high-demand projects.](https://streethosting.com.br/en/infraestructure) ## Related guides [VPS Intermediate How to set up Nginx as a reverse proxy on a VPS Your app runs on an internal port and you want to serve it on a domain with HTTPS. Nginx as a reverse proxy solves that and also brings several apps together in one place. 3 min Read guide](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/nginx-reverse-proxy-vps) [Infrastructure Intermediate Bare metal vs cloud vs VPS: which one fits your project A VPS shares one machine, bare metal gives you the whole box and cloud is built for elasticity. Each solves a different problem. Here is how to choose based on your workload and budget. 3 min Read guide](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/bare-metal-vs-cloud-vs-vps) [Infrastructure Advanced How to migrate a server to another provider with no downtime Switching hosts is scary because you might lose data or go offline. With preparation, testing and DNS under your control, the cutover happens with minimal interruption for your users. 3 min Read guide](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/migrate-server-without-downtime) [← Back to the Guide Center](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides)